With a clean, intuitive new UI as well as tutorials that introduce both new and veteran managers to all of the major systems in Football Manager 2019, it's never been as easy to get into the game. Thanks to a myriad of upgrades, both large and small, the series as also never been this good. Unarguably the pinnacle of the series so far, with only a few remaining issues like press conferences and player conversations, this is sure to be the highlight for all budding managers.

The improvements are a hugely positive step in making the Football Manager series the most realistic version of soccer management. There’s been no finer version of a Football Manager game, and it could be a few years before we see an entry as innovative as this one.

Football Manager 2019 takes the series to a whole new level and finally brings in some long needed refreshment. What we have is easily the most accessible Football Manager in recent memory but one that can still many moons to master.

Finally: A season, where Sports Interactive invested more time in revamping whole systems instead of just finetuning. The result is the best franchise entry in years. If you are a soccer fanatic urging to find out what it is like to coach a team, this is your dream come true.

This entry is a pretty big step forward in the franchise. There are a lot of small and big features and improvements that make it the most complete and advanced football manager simulator in the market.

Football Manager 2019 is the most compelling and involving upgrade of the game since, for my money, the superb FM14. While some old niggles remain --press interaction still needs its proper overhaul, for instance-- its commitment to openness and accessibility has not come at the cost of its extraordinary depth. Quite the opposite. We go again.

Sports Interactive went further into realism by implementing novelties in particular in the training and the matches with the appearance of VAR for example. In the end, FM 2019 is the perfect representation of German football, which it obtained the license: efficient, solid, and never disappointing.

It's still not the most welcoming game for newcomers, stacking systems upon systems upon systems, but for veterans and those willing to put in the effort to learn, there's never been a better time to hop in and entrench yourself in the virtual dugout. Football Manager 2019's tweaks will have you happily settling in for another mammoth play session of juggling egos, pipping your rivals to the signing of a wonderkid, and smashing in a 90th-minute winner to capture a league title in triumphant fashion.

Football Manager 2019 is a good step forward for the series, thanks to a system enriched and expanded in the capillarity of its structure. The new management tactics and training allow an even deeper and more precise approach in the preparation of the team and individual matches. It is, therefore, the usual immense and encyclopaedic football managerial experience, which certainly will not disappoint enthusiasts. We would have expected, however, a clear improvement regarding some of the historical problems of the series.

It’s easier than ever to be drawn into the world of Football Manager 2019, and set about becoming the next Pep Guardiola — or perhaps for the more modest and realistic amongst us, the next Steve Cotterill.

Football Manager has radically changed my way of buying games in recent years. Worse. Because I don't trust the developers anymore.

In FMFootball Manager has radically changed my way of buying games in recent years. Worse. Because I don't trust the developers anymore.

In FM 2019 they have improved training and tactics (just the layout, honestly) but left out many other problems accumulated over the last 5 years. Some of them really very boring. AI is still far behind (this is why I'm not convinced at all by the tactics change). The negotiations, the relations with the media and the players, remains all boring. For example: once again it will be useless to identify the potential star playing in an unknown league, because it will cost you more than Ronaldo.

So, yes, it's something more than the usual database update, which we were used to, but not at this price. You will read positive reviews from those who bought it at 20-30 euros. For 20 euros I would have spoken very well of it too, for 55 not. For 55 is a refund.

My advice is: don't buy it if you bought FM 2018. Or wait for the next sales.…Full Review »

Yearly release cycles are ludicrous for this game. I only buy a version of it once every 3 or 4 years. Frankly the game is getting tooYearly release cycles are ludicrous for this game. I only buy a version of it once every 3 or 4 years. Frankly the game is getting too complicated for its own good, playing FM is more like having a second job now than a relaxing diversion.…Full Review »

Another year, another Football Manager brought by Sports Interactive. This series has been coming since 2005 and as such, fans should be eagerAnother year, another Football Manager brought by Sports Interactive. This series has been coming since 2005 and as such, fans should be eager to know what the small news of this new version. Signing up for a club as a coach, setting tactics and training, hiring and taking the club as far as possible in national and international competitions are things that are part of everyday life in Football Manager.

But let's go directly to the news features of this Football Manager 2019. Now we have more realistic and detailed training sessions. Each day has two or three training sessions that can be dedicated to game tactics, attacking or defensive moves, or more general things. In other words, whatever we understand. It may be a bit annoying at first to be altering train X on day X, but it's a very good feature.

The tactics have also been changed ... and for the better. Movements with or without ball are back. Now we can change our tactics more deeply and there are lots of options for the player to choose and form the kind of game they want. The Tiki-taka of Barcelona, the bus of José Mourinho or the Gegenpressing of Jürgen Klopp. Yes, at the beginning it is natural that it is difficult to define a tactic with feets and head, especially for those who are new to the Football Manager series, but this is part of the menu, which makes things more rewarding. It should be noted that the 1st Division German (Bundesliga) and the 2nd Division German have for the first time the teams, equipment and licensed players.

Football Manager 2019 also added the VAR (Video-referee), which allows us to see the marked offsides. But not everything is roses in this new version, because Football Manager and Transfers are two words that don't match. Unfortunately, it's already a common problem in the Football Manager series. It continues to make zero-sense clubs asking for more than 100 million euros for an unknown young player.

Visually, Football Manager games have never been appealing (nor was it ever their goal), but that's because the producers have always wanted to make the Football Manager series a lightweight game. However, 3D Match Engine received improvements, especially with the physics of the ball. Negative points are the transfer market, the number of injuries a bit exaggerated and the printing conferences are something generic and repetitive. In the end, Football Manager 2019 turns out to be a good improvement over last year's version.

Veredict: Football Manager 2019 has received some modifications for the better and is recommended for fans of the series.…Full Review »